The proposed research will examine the efforts of the Nicaraguan women's movement to improve women's health status as one aspect of renegotiating gender relations in society. The primary research methods of participant-observation and life history interviews will provide the data to analyze how the Nicaraguan women's movement and its international allies challenge not only gender ideologies but also ideologies that support the continuity of other social systems that oppress Nicaraguan women. The proposed study of the politicization of women's health issues in Nicaragua will contribute to theoretical perspectives in nursing science that address relationships between dynamics of power and the delivery of primary, community-based health care services for women.
